WASHINGTON—U.S. factory activity grew at its slowest pace in nearly two years in April amid a rise in workers quitting their jobs, and manufacturers are becoming more anxious about supply over the summer because of new COVID-19 lockdowns in China.
The survey from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) on Monday described manufacturing as remaining “in a demand-driven, supply chain-constrained environment.”
ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee chair Timothy Fiore said new coronavirus outbreaks overseas were “creating a near-term headwind for the U.S. manufacturing community,” noting that some manufacturers worried “about their Asian partners’ ability to deliver reliably in the summer months.”
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